For decades, working parents — and mothers in particular — have been calling for more flexibility to juggle their personal and professional responsibilities. Finally, a global pandemic forced many employers to give it to them. Office workers were sent home en masse to stem the spread of the novel coronavirus, along the way testing out their companies’ capacity to maintain operations with a dispersed workforce — and challenging some long-held notions about how productivity is best achieved.
For others, the biggest challenge to work-from-anywhere has little to do with the work itself. Helen Xue, 30, a communications lead, was living in San Francisco when the pandemic hit and relocated to Portland to be near her partner’s family. With the permanent policy in place, they recently moved again to Seattle. Being a digital nomad may be the dream job for those who love to travel. However, finding (and managing!) a job that fits your personality, goals, and adventurous lifestyle is no easy feat. This is how I balance working and traveling around the world. Remote work trips clearly are not the same as a vacation, but they are a great way to hack around your normal holiday limitations and to enjoy a bit more freedom.